Ariana Grande is putting on a brave face, somehow finding a way to soldier on after the huge upheaval in her life — the loss of her beloved … ponytail.

AG proudly rocked her new shorter ‘do Tuesday night in L.A. while out for sushi dinner with her big bro, Frankie. Her fans were shocked last week when Ariana posted a pic revealing she’d chopped her famously long locks — but this is the first time we’ve seen the cut in public.

Honestly, it doesn’t look all that short. Definitely shortER, but looks like there’s still enough to make a ponytail if she wanted.

The big question now … which style will we see when her highly-anticipated music video for “Thank U, Next” comes out. As we first reported, it’s gonna drop on Friday.